Apparatus for producing insulation in the slots of magnetic cores



June 2, 1970 L. M. MASON APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING msummon IN THE SLOTS 0FMAGNETIC CORES 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 1'7, 1967 INVENTOR. L owe/l/7. Mason, BY K 45"? fitter-276g June 2, 1970 L. M. MASON APPARATUS FORPRODUCING INSULATION IN THE SLOTS OF MAGNETIC GORES 5 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed July 17, 1967 .n m? w |l.|| I |\I N a n m W m W mm I M 3 I 4 I MK. m w M4 M 4, M #0 5%.. P w 5 M w m l a c. w fi m A 4\ A Clll fl June2, 1970 L. M. MASON 3,514,836

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING INSULATION IN THE SLOTS 0F MAGNETIC corms FiledJuly 17, 1967 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 P/GJO June 2, 1970 L. MLMASON 3,514,336

APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING INSULATION IN THE SLOTS 0F MAGNETIC CORES FiledJuly 17, 1967 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 lZBa. INVENTOR. F765 Lowel/ 7. Mason,

BY Q @MZ Attorney.

L. M. MASON APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING INSULATION IN THE June 2, 19703,514,836

SLOTS OF MAGNETIC CORES 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 wz/f I firvenzar'x L owcM/MMason,

Filed July 17, 1967 Hag W M/ hv/ l l INT -IE Q\ I United States Patent OUS. Cl. 29-205 11 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE In the production ofslot liners having differing configurations. in'slots of a magneticcore, dielectric strip material is fed to a sizing and forming stationby a strip accumulating and urging device, and strip'pieces ofpreselected sizes areformed. The accumulating and feeding device urgesthe strip material toward a stop plate at the station, and an adjustablecutting blade severs the strip material to form the strip pieces withthe desired size. The strip pieces are placed on a given one of severalforming tools disposed adjacent the station to produce individual strippieces having desired configurations, and the tools inserted intopreselected slots of a magnetic core to carry the strip pieces into' thecore slots as slot liners. A strip piece holding arrangement is providedin the vicinity of the sizing and forming station to maintain the strippiece on' the forming tool' during insertion for assisting in the properand accurate-placernent of the strip piece in the magnetic core slot.

The slot liners so produced may have laterally extending portions and anintermediate axially extending bight portion at one 'end therebypermittingshorter coils to be used in the magnetic core while alsoallowing the coils to-takea gradual bendadjacenfthe core, next to thebight portion, which tends to prevent damage to the coils.

BACKGROUND OF 'THE INVENTION The present invention relates to apparatusfor producing More particularly, the present invention relates to animproved apparatus for lining the slots of a magnetic core withdielectric strip material.

. Magnetic cores;- such as those formed of a stack of laminations used'in. electric motors, generators, transformers, and the like; generallyrequire some type of electric insulation between'certain core surfacesand electrical coils carried by the cores. Taking aconventionallaminated stator core, for example, electrical coils are carried inslots which extend axially through the core and have entrances incommunication-with a central bore adapted to receive a rotatable memberor'rotor of the motor'YI'hese electrical coils .arenormally covered withalay er of'insulating material themselves, but generally speakingadditional insulation is usually required in'the core slots and at oneorboth core end faces to prevent the electricalcoils from shorting outor being grounded against the core during excitation of the coils; Suchadditional insulation edges.

3,514,836 Patented June 2, 1970 ice is especially desirable should thecoil insulation be bruised and cracked which is a particular problem inthe vicinity of the usually sharp edges of the slots at the core endfaces. One desirable approach for insulating the slots concerns theemployment of slot liners fabricated from suitable dielectric stripmaterial which are inserted into the core slots either manually or withthe use of inserting equipment.

One problem, prior to the present invention with the slot linerapproach, related to the difliculty in attaining the desired accurateplacement of the liners with a great degree of consistency on a massproduction basis. In particular, where the core stack height wasunusually long, for example, over two inches, the liners had a tendencyto become twisted in the slots or otherwise misaligned during theirinstallation. This may cause exposure of parts of the slot walls to thecoils at least in the vicinity of the bore entrances, ultimatelyresulting in engagement between some coil turns with the slot walls. Inaddition, even for cores having heights two inches and below the slotliners may become misaligned as a result of obstructions occurring inthe slots, such as might be caused from laminations which were notproperly aligned in the stack. Unacceptable insulated cores couldtherefore be produced either as a result of misalignment of the linersin the slots, improperly aligned laminations to provide a defective coreor. both, while also causing damage to the installed liners. This isparticularly time consuming and costly when discovered only after all ofthe liners for a given core have already been placed in the slots.

Another difiiculty presented in the satisfactory use of slot linersresults from the previous lack of a versatile, inexpensive, yetexpeditious manner of developing slot liners in core slots. By way ofillustration, in view of the great variety of core and core slot sizesand shapes in use today, there is a need for an approach capable ofhandling cores of different configurations and of producing slot linershaving differing configurations, including shape and size, with aminimum modification required in the prac' tice of the approach as wellas of the down-time of the;

equipment employed. e

Consequently, it is quite desirable that apparatus be, furnished whichovercomes these problems and produces slot liners with the desiredaccurate placementin the slots of a core and with a high degree ofconsistency even liners for core and slots having differing sizes andshapes; Other desirable features include the development of di? electricslot liners of precise dimensions and shapes for accurate placement inthe core slots as well as slot .linersl permitting coil end turns whichextend beyond the edges of the slots to be pressed into a desiredposition relative to thecore without a sharp bend occurring at the slotIt is, therefore, the primary object of the present invention to provideimproved apparatus for produclng electrical insulators in the slots ofmagnetic cores.

It is a more specific object of the present invention to provideimproved apparatus, which will overcome the problems and fulfill atleast some of the above-mentioned desirable features.

It is another object of the present invention to provide improvedapparatus for producing precisely dimensioned liners in variously shapedslots of graded slot magnetic cores, with the liners being accuratelyplaced in the core slots and with the apparatus operating essentiallyindependently of operator control.

- It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improvedstrip feeding arrangement for use in apparatus for producing slot linersin the slots of magnetic cores.

It is another object of the invention to provide improved, apparatuswhich permit stator coils in a magnetic core including a reduction ofconductor end turn height, and which permit savings in material andbetter performance characteristics of a motor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention, in one formthereof, I have provided an arrangement for producing electricalinsulators, for instance slot liners, from an elongated continuous stripof electrically insulating material, e.g. dielectric, in the slots of amagnetic core.

In one form of the improved apparatus there is included a material feedstation having supply rolls for supplying preselected quantities ofstrip material to an accumulating and urging device disposed adjacentthe supply rolls. Located adjacent the accumulating and urging device isa sizing and forming station having a stop plate located at a firstposition in the path of travel of the strip material for restraining ofthe strip material. Located at a second position, at a preselecteddistance from the stop plate, is a cutting blade for severing the stripmaterial to provide a strip piece having a preselected length asdetermined by the distance between the preselected distance. Means isprovided for moving the cutting blade across the path of travel of thestrip material to sever the strip material, and other means is providedfor adjusting the distance between the first and second positions tofurnish strip pieces having dilferent lengths.

: A stator core is supported on a support mandrel adjacent the sizingand forming station and means is mounted in communication with thelocation between the first and second position for effecting a desiredconfigura tion of the strip pieces to produce slot liners and fortransferring the slot liners into preselected slots of the core.

In a more specific aspect, the inserting means includes a forming bladeassembly having a number of forming blades generally corresponding inshape to differently shaped slots of the magnetic core disposed adjacentthe sizing and forming station with means being provided for moving theassembly to locate a preselected tool in position to receive a piece ofdielectric strip material. Also, more specifically, the means foreffecting a desired configuration of the strip pieces to produce slotliners ineludes a mechanism mounted adjacent the forming tool assemblyfor placing the individual strip pieces into an associated forming toolto eifect the desired shape thereof. Inaddition, means is provided formaintaining the slot liner in position on the associated tool as thetool carries the slot liner into a preselected core slot to line theslot. .lIn another specific aspect of the invention, a master controlshaft coordinates or synchronizes all the mechanisms'in-the apparatus toinsure that each mechanism operates in the proper sequence, travels theprescribed distance, etc. The master control shaft acts to drive the;

cutting blade and placing means to sever and place strip pieces upon.the forming tools, i contro s the adjustment of the cutting blade withrespect to the stop plate to vary the length of strip piece severed whendesired, it acts to rotate the blade assembly to dispose dilferentlyshaped forming tools in position to receive a strip piece, it controlsthe movement of a carriage which in turn carries the various formingtools into the core slots, and it rotates the mandrel to dispose thecore slots in position to receive the shaped strip pieces therein.

This exemplified apparatus is extremely versatile in application in thatcores having from one to nine or more diiferently shaped slots, havingup to thirty-six or more total slots, having bores in excess of fiveinches in diameter, and stack heights in excess of nine or more inchesmay be handled. Furthennore, slot liners in'the illustratedexemplification may be accurately dimensioned and placed directly intocore slots quickly as the time interval between cutting a strip piece,forming it into a desired configuration and placing it into a slot maybe as short as 0.15 second. The exemplificationalso maybe adaptedquickly and with a minimum of down-time to handle these different coreconfigurations. In addition, slot liners having several different cuifstyles may be developed in slots and various safetyfeatures; areprovided to insure the eflicient and safe production of quality statorcores.

The subject matter which I regard as my invention is set forth in theappended claims. The invention itself, however, along with furtherobjects and advantages thereof will be understoodby referring to thefollowing description taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings.a i

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSj FIG. 1 is a schematic perspectiveviewof one form of apparatus embodying the concept of the presentinvention, the apparatus being capable of producing electricalinsulators in the illustrated form of .slotlinersfrom elec-, tricallyinsulating or dielectric strip material in preselected core slotsofamagnetic core; x 1 .1

FIG. 2 is a partial elevational view of. azcore in the. exemplificationhaving had insulating .slot linersproduced therein by one form of theapparatus as depicted FIG. 3 is a perspective view of, one typeofslotliner; which may be produced in accordance with the presentinvention; v

FIGS. 4-8 inclusive depict, partially in schematic form, the preferredmanner in which the slot liners of FIGS. 2 and 3 having the desiredconfigurations are developed in axially extending, slots of .themagnetic core of the exemplification wherein:

FIG. 4 is a schematic elevational view illustrating, in simplified form,one way in which dielectric strip material may be fed into anaccumulating and feeding device;

FIG. 5 is a simplified schematic elevational view similar to that ofFIG. 4 showing the dielectric strip mate-' rial setting or cocking theaccumulating and feeding de= vice as it is being fed into engagementwith a stopplate at a sizing and forming station;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to that of FIG. 5 showing the movement of thecutting blade and forming mechanism in relation to a forming tool as apiece of dielec tric strip material isbeing placed onto the forming toolin orderto produce a slot liner in accordance with the presentinvention; r u

FIG. 7 is a simplified partially schematic elevationalside viewrevealing a slot .liner'or shaped Strip piece be-" ing carried on theforming tool as it is'being'inserted axially into a preselected slot ofa stator .core of the exem-= plification; V

FIG. 8 is a view-similarto that of FIGS. .4-6, show; ing the stripmaterial being fed into the sizing and form-s ing station when thecutting blade is raised preparatory to the production of another slotliner;

FIG. 9 is a front perspective view of the preferred FIG. '11 is apartial perspective view of a forming .tool or blade, strip piece andstrip placing mechanism showing the manner in which the placingmechanism cooperates with the forming tool to shape the strip piece andproduce fiat, cuff-like extensions thereon;

FIG. 12 is a partial perspective view of the forming tool and strippiece of the strip placing mechanism shown in FIG. 11 furtherillustrating how the strip piece is shaped and the extensions produced;

FIG. 13 is a bottom plan view of the strip placin mechanism and formingtool shown in FIGS. 11 and 12;

FIG. 14 is a partial elevational view of the carriage that carries theforming tools into the core slots, showing a safety cut-off feature forstopping the apparatus if a forming tool should meet an obstruction in acore slot;

FIG. 15 is a top plan view, partially broken away of the sizing andforming station showing various details of the stop plate, cuttingplate, and forming tools; and

FIG. 16 is a cam layout diagram showing the movement of the variousmechanisms of the exemplified apparatus in relation to rotation of thedriving means carried by a'master control shaft.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT General description of methodTurning now to a consideration. of the drawings in more detail, FIGS..1-8 inclusive show the preferred method capable of beingpracticed by theillustrated embodiment of the apparatus in its preferred form. In theillustrated exemplification, the development of electrical insulators isin the form ofslot'liners 10 in an inductive device such as a magneticstator core 12 from electrically insulating or dielectric material 14 inelongated strip form is provided. The core 12 has a bore 13 andplurality of axially extending slots90 opening on the bore 13. The stripmaterial v14 is. fed from a storageor supply station 16 by a feeding.mechanism generally denoted by numeral 30. The feeding stepincludessupplying a predetermined quantity of the strip material 14 bysupply-means 32 to a strip accumulating and urging or feeding device 34at a material feed station A. A portion of the preselected quantity isurged toward a stop plate 62 at a first position in a sizing and formingstation B as the accumulating and urging device 34'is normally biasedtoward the stop plate 62 by a biasing means or springs 37 and 37a. Thestrip material 14 acts to cock or rotate the device 34 away from thestop plate 62 by overcoming the force of springs 37 and 37a (compareFIGS. 4 and 5). Strip pieces 70 having desired sizes are then formed asa cutting blade 64, located at a second position in the sizing andforming station B, severs the strip material 14 (see FIG. 6).

After the strippieces 70 are formed, they are placed into engagementwith a forming tool or blade 80 that is supported generally adjacent thesizing and forming station B between the first and second positions withthe tool 80 havingra cross-sectionalcontour generally corresponding tothe shape of a slot .ofsa-rnagnetic core 12. In this manner,.strip'pieces havinga desired configuration are produced, withza'placingmeans or mechanism generally denotedby. numeral160being 'used'to effectthe placing operation. In addition, as the :strip pieces are placed uponthe toolz.80, ai-lateral bendoisestablished along at least one endregion 14b to provide the slot liner 10 with cufflike .po'rtionsorlateral extensions'88, .88a and a connecting or night portion 89. .y. .1

'w'The'individual strip pieces are transferred into preselected 1 slots90 of the core -12'by inserting the forming t'ool 80 with the shapedstrip piece 70 positioned there- 6 onintothe preselected slots- (seeFIG. 7 ).'As the forming tool 80 carries the slot liner 70.into thepreselected slot 90, the strip piece 70 is held or retained. on the tool80 by a holding means including a pressure 'bar 135 (see FIGS. 6 and 7)externally of the core 12. 1 f

In the exemplification, the stripmaterial 14 is supplied to theaccumulating and urging device 34 by a pair of power driven supply rolls38 and 40 and a pair of idler rolls 42 and 44,- the supply rolls beingdriven by a shaft 153 which operates through a suitable clutch which iscontrolled by a proximity pickup or switch 35 (see, e.g., FIG. 9). Thus,the supply rolls 38 and 40 are periodically energized to supply apredetermined amount of strip material 14 into the strip accumulatingand feeding means 34 which in turn urges a portion of the predeterminedamount of strip material into the sizing and forming station B.

As the accumulating and feeding device 34 urges the strip material 14into engagement with the stop plate 62, the length of the piece of stripmaterial that is cut will only depend upon the accurate positioning ofthe stop plate 62 and the cutting blade 64, which in the exemplificationis very accurately controlled by a bar cam 194. This permits the strippieces 70 to be cut to extremely close tolerances, while in additionproviding a relatively simple feeding mechanism. On the other hand, ifpositively driven feed rolls were used to feed the strip into the sizingand forming station B, for example, there would have to be a complexgearing arrangement to accurately drive and stop the feed rolls, and itwould be rather difficult to vary the length of strip being fed into thesizing and forming mechanism.

An inserting mechanism generally denoted by reference numeral 100 isprovided at an inserting station C (see FIGS. 1 and 7) for inserting thetool with a shaped strip piece or slot liner 10 thereon into apreselected core slot 90. The inserting mechanism in the exemplificationtakes the form of a carriage 102 movable between rear and forwardpositions by a linkage operatively connected to a master control ordrive shaft which is continuously driven by the drive motor 48 actingthrough an output shaft 121, worm gear 122 and spur gear 123. Thecarriage 102 includes a connecting block or leg 124 engaged in a slot126 in the forming tool 80. When the carriage 102 is moved forwardly, itcarries the forming tool 80 forwardly into the magnetic core 12. Themagnetic core 12, shown' schematically in FIG. 1 and in greater detailin FIG. 2 is mounted upon a mandrel 130 located axially adjacent thesizing and forming station B and retained thereon by suitable frictionalretaining means.

As the carriage moves from its rear position to its forward position inresponse to actuation by the master control shaft 120 through thelinkage 110, the forming tool 80 is carried axially into a core slot 90which is in alignment therewith. By this movement of the forming tool80, a slot liner 10, formed from the piece 70 of electrically insulatingstrip material 14, is carried into the aligned slot, while the pressurebar (see FIGS. 7 and 12) retains the slot liner 10 on the'forming blade80. Thus, it will be understood that in accordance with the exemplifiedmethod, the shaped slot liners 10 may be inserted directly into apreselected slot 90 of a magnetic core 12 with the shape of the slotlinerbeing main tained during the insertion and withthe slot linertra'veling directly into the core' slot so as to reduce. the pos'sibility of its being improperly positioned in the slot due to anytwisting action or the like. f

Referring again specifically to FIGS. 2 and 3, I have shown anexemplified stator core 12-which has had slot liners -10 producedorjdeveloped therein in accordance with the present invention, togetherwith one type of slot liner 10 that can be produced by-the presentapparatus. The slot liner 10 has flat lateral extensions or cuff-likeportions 88 and 88a which, as will be seen, lie flatagainst an'end'face' 12a of -the st'ator core 12 when inserted therein." In'addition,abight or-colla'r portion 89 extends axially between "the extensions."The lateral extensions 88 and 88a provide insulation between the "core12 and electricalrcoils (not-illustrated) at thecore face 12a and attheislot edges or'corn'ers. The lateral extensions 88 and '88:: alsopermit the end turn portions of the electrical coils toberelativelyshorter than is possible when the usual cuffs are used, as theusualcuffs extend beyond the faces of the stator core. This'will thereforeresult in savings due to the shorter coils. The axially extendingcollar89 is useful in that it permits the coils to be pressed backtoward the face 12a while causing the bend in the coils to be gradualrather than sharp. Hence, this tends to prevent damage to thecoilinsulation at the bends, and adds rigidity to the coil and coreassembly. The present apparatus is also capable of producing cuffshaving the usual axial rather than the novel flat extensions, as will beexplained hereinafter.

From the foregoing brief description of the exemplified method andapparatus, taken in conjunction with the schematic illustration of FIG.1 and the illustrations of FIGS. 2-8, it'will be appreciated that theapparatus has four operating stations A-D, each of which is controlledthrough the master control or drive shaft 120, and which thereforeoperate in synchronism for developing slot liners in the axiallyextending slots 90 of a magnetic device such as a stator core 12. Whi ethe mechanisms at each of these stations have been described in a gen-.eral way, a further detailed explanation of the syn chronizing functionof operation of the master control shaft 120 as well as of themechanisms at each station is presented below in appropriatesubdivisions of the specification.

MASTER CONTROL FOR SYNCHRONIZING APPARATUS MECHANISMS In order tocontinuously form slot liners of different configurations and place themin various preselected slots of the magnetic core 12, the master driveshaft 120 is provided with first, second and third driving means denoted140, 150 and 160 respectively. The first driving means 140 takes theform of a cam 142 mounted on the shaft 120 for rotation therewith. A camfollower 144, mounted on a pinion shaft 145, is in engagement with thecam 142. The master control shaft 120 rotates continuously during theoperation of the apparatus as the motor 48 is energized by suitableelectrical apparatus 49, and due to the configuration of the cam 142,the pinion shaft 145 rotates in a first direction, dwells or remainsstationary, and then rotates in the opposite direction during eachrevolution of the cam 142 with the master control shaft 120. This motionis illustrated graphically in FIG. 16.

The pinion shaft has a pinion gear 86 mounted interconnected with a racksection 84 which moves upwardly,

remains stationary and then moves downwardly during each cycle orrotation of the cam 142 and master control shaft 120 as indicated bycurve b in FIG. 16. This arrangemerit causes the cutting blade 64 andthe placing mechanisin to rise, dwell and fall during eachcycle of themaster control shaft 120. Thus, during each cycle, one strip piece isformed bybeing severed by blade 64 and shaped'into a, desiredconfiguration or slot liner 10 by the placing. mechanism 60. In order toachieve continuous bpefation, the accumulating and urging device 34feeds the end of the strip material 14 up to the stop plate 62 each timethe rack section 84 moves upwardly, moving the cutting blade 64out ofthe path of the strip material 14 (see, e.'g.,FIG, 8). i w 7 Topresent'one of several forming blades (80,- 81 and 82 in theexemplification, as shown in FIG. 1) in position to receive a piece 70of electrically insulating st'rip ma terial thereon during each cycle,thesecond driving means 8 "150'ori the master control shaftis a cam 151with which a Genevatype cainfollower arrangement 152 is operativ'elyassociated. The'cam follower arrangement 152 is locatedon a shaft 153which is inturnc'onnected through 'aplurality of 'sp'ur' gear's154, 155,156 and 157 and a second earn 158 and cam follower arrangement 159 to anoscillatable shaft 170 having a gear segment 172 therebn. The gearsegment 172 is in engagement with aspur gear 174 that is connected to arotatable forming tool or blade assembly 180. The tool assembly 180 ismounted upon but not movable with a shaft 132 and as the gear segmentoscillates, the tool assembly 180 will be moved to one of threepositions, corresponding to an upward or aligned disposition of one ofthe three forming tools 80, 81, 82 with respect to a core slot and theplacing mechanism 60. It will be seen that the tool assembly 180includes a hollow tubular member 181 rotatably mounted on shaft 132 andhaving the spur gear 174 mounted thereto. The tubular member carries aplurality of slotted annular mo-unting rings 182a, 182b and 182s inwhich the three forming tools 80, 81 and 82 are respectively slidablydisposed.

As the exemplified apparatus is shown for use with a stator core 12having three different slot configurations or differently shaped slots90a, 90b, 900 (see FIG. 2), each forming tool has a differentconfiguration or contour in cross section generally corresponding to theshape of a slot (viz, tools 80, 81 and 82 correspond respectively toslots 90a, 90b and 900). However, as will become apparent, the presentapparatus is useful for producing slot liners in stator cores having upto nine or more differently shaped slots.

It is, of course, necessary to rotate the stator core 12 to presentsucceeding of its slots 90 in axial alignment with a given one of theforming tools for receiving a slot liner therein, and hence as the toolassembly 180 is rotated by the gear segment 172 on shaft 170* inresponse to oscillation imparted to the shaft 170 through cam fol-'lower 159 and cam 158 and gears 13211 on shaft 132 and 158a on shaft158b, the stator holder or mandrel is also rotated. Furthermore, inorder to synchronize the movements of the tool assembly 180 and the core12 without an unduly complex mechanism, the mandrel 130 is mounted onthe end of the rotatable shaft 132 which is driven through the same geartrain (i.e., spur gears 154, 155, 156 and 157) as is the aforementionedoscillatable shaft 170, at an indexing station D. These two shafts 132and thereby act in synchronism,'and as the tool assembly is rotated fordisposing a given preselected tool of the forming tools adjacent theslot liner placing mechanism 60, the shaft 132 is rotated through anangle represented by the formula (number of slots in the core) topresent each preselected slot 90 in turn for receiving a slot liner 10therein.

It will be understood that as each differently shaped forming tool 80,81, 82 is disposed adjacent the placing mechanism 60 in position toreceive a piece of dielectric strip 70, it is necessary that the strippiece that is out be of the proper length, as differently shaped slotshave different inner peripheral lengths and hence require dif-' ferentlengths of slot liner. It isextremely .irnportant'that thedevelopedlength. of each slot liner :be accurate, as a slot liner that is/tooshort may. permitan electrical coil carried in the. slot'to shortagainst .the barewall of the slot, and a slot linerthat isltoo long willsimplynotfit within the slot. Accordingly, to accurately control thedeveloped length of each stripv piece '70 inarelativelysimpleyetextremely effective manner, the oscillatable shaft 170 which controlsthe position of the forming tool assembly .180 also' is connectedthrougha pair of spur gears and 186, a vertical shaft 188 and=a linka'ge;19flto-the bar cam 19.4 for controlling the relative positions 9. of thestop plate 62 and the cutting blade 64. The bar cam has two sets of camsurfaces 335 and 336 thereon (see in particular FIG. 15) which areassociated with cam followers 137 and 138 respectively. The followers137 and138 function in a manner to be discussed below to change thedistance between the stop plate 62 and the cutting blade 64.

The third driving means 160 on the master control shaft 120 is a thirdcam 161 associated with a cam follower 162 on an idler shaft 163 whichin turn has an arm 164 connected to the aforementioned linkage 110, thelinkage 110 being, of course, connected in turn to the carriage 102. Asthe master control shaft 120 rotates, the third cam 161 acts through thelinkage 110 to move the cariage 102 between its rear and forwardpositions during each cycle, in synchronism with the oscillatable shaft170, the rotating shaft 132, and thebar cam 194. This motion will beseen in FIG. 16 and curve c. Hence, it will be apparent by thisdiscussion of the functioning of the master control shaft 120 and itscooperation with the various mechanisms of the exemplified apparatus,that the various mechanisms operate automatically and in synchronism toproduce slot liners in the various slots 90 of a stator core 12.

MATERIAL FEED STATION (A) Referring now to the schematic illustration ofFIG. 1 to FIGS. 4-6, 8 and 9, it will be seen that the material used toform slot liners 10 in the illustrated exemplification is elongatedstrip material 14 formed in a roll 18 which is carried in a roll supportcabinet 19. The material used in the exempl-ification is a terephthalatepolyester, and may, for example, be of the type known in the trade asMylar. This material is electrically insulating as well as beingflexible and relatively easily shaped, and it has been found to besatisfactory for the present use. However, it will be appreciated thatother suitable electrically insulating material such as treated paper orthe like may be used.

The roll 18 of elongated electrically insulating strip material 14 ismounted between several rolls 20, 20a, etc. in the cabinet 14. When thepresent apparatus is to be started, an end of the strip 14 is threadedbetween a pair of guide members 21, 22 one of which (21 in theexemplification) is adjustably mounted on a pair of threaded shafts 23,23a to compensate for different widths of strip material. In order toaccommodate stators having dif ferent stack heights, it will obviouslybe necessary to use different widths of strip material. Hence, byturning the handle 24 the movable guide member 21 may be moved toward oraway from the fixed guide member 22 to accommodate these differentwidths of strip material.

. The strip material 14 is fed or threaded past the guide members 21 and22, and in a serpentine path over the first and second idler or guiderolls 42 and 44 and between the pair of power driven supply rolls 38 and40. When the end of the strip 14 is'between the two supply rolls 38 and40, the drive motor 48 is started. The first supply roll 38 is drivenfrom theshaft 153, being connected thereto through an electromagneticclutch 46, gears 47, 47a, and

rotatable'shaft 39. The shaft 39 has a gear 391; thereon which in turnmates with a gear 39b -on the supply roll 40, wherein the supply rolls 38 and40 are rotated in 0p-' posite directions to pull the strip material1 4 from the material supply roll 18' when the electromagnetic clutch isenergized and the shaft 39rotates. Of course, as explained above, theshaft 153 rotates 90, degrees per revo-- lutionof the master controlshaft 120 during the opera'-:

tion of the present apparatus. However,- thesupply rolls 38 and 40' are;only periodically'driven through the clutch 46 as will beexplained'below.

As'the strip-material 14 is pulled past the guide mem-' bers 21, v22,o'nelateral edge 14a of the strip material is turned inwardly uponitself bymeans of a spiral groove extendingalong the inner edge of theguide member 22. This is. done in order to provide a crease 1412 runningalong the lateraledge 14a of the strip material 14,"which is permanentlyimpressed as the strip material 14 travels between the pinching guideroll 42 and supply roll 38.

The supply roll 38 thus has two functions, to supply the strip material14 into the accumulating and feeding device 34, acting with supply roll40, and to impress the crease at 14b, acting with idler or guide roll42. This longi-v tudinally extending crease 14b is necessary in order toform the fiat extensions 88 and 88a previously described, at the sizingand forming station B. In the exemplification, the lateral edge 14b isunfolded before the strip material is fed upwardly between the supplyrolls 38 and 40 for leaving the crease 14b, when it is desired to formthe illustrated flat extensions 88, 88a. If, however, axially extendingcuffs are to be formed, the lateral edge 14a is left folded as the stripmaterial 14 is fed upwardly between the supply rolls 38 and 40. In thismanner, it is possible with the exemplified apparatus to produce slotliners having several varieties of cuffs, i.e., cuff-like extensions 88,88a or axial cuffs. In addition, a cuff may be produced on the other endof the slot liner 10 by providing a spiral groove in the guide member21, if desired.-

With the accumulating and feeding device 34 held in a forward positionby the coil springs 37 and 37a as the apparatus is being started (seeFIG. 4), a proximity switch 35 operates to energize the electromagneticclutch 46, and hence causes the supply rolls 38, to turn. As the supplyrolls 38 and 40 turn, the strip material 14 is fed upwardly into theaccumulating and feeding or urging device 34 in a first direction,following the curved section 36 of the device 34 and taking a generallyright angle bend therethrough. The forward end of the strip material 14is thus fed into abutting engagement with the stop plate 62. As thestrip material 14 engages the stop plate with the supply rolls 38, 40still turning, a compressive force is built up in the strip material 14,which force is transmitted to the accumulating and feeding device 34 atthe curved section 36. The flexible strip material 14, acting at thecurved section 36 due to a column effect,

is rigid enough to force the feeding device 34 rearwardly about itsmounting on a rotatable bar 34a as the com- 40. It will be appreciatedthat the tension springs 37, 37a 1 now urge a portion of thepredetermined amount of strip material 14 that was fed into theaccumulating and feeding device 34 towards the sizing and formingstation B into engagement with the plate 62, or a double cuff may beproduced by feeding two strips of material 14 into station Bsimultaneously.

The exemplified accumulating and feeding device 34 of the material feedmechanism 30, as shown in the exem-" plification is extremely importantto the operation of thepresent apparatus as it enables a preciselycontrolled amount of material to be fed into the sizing and formingstation in such a way as to eliminate the complex mechanism which wouldbe otherwise necessary if the strip material were fed therein directlyfrom power driven supply rolls. It will be appreciated that with theexemplified arrangement, the'length of strip material fed into the"sizing and forming station B depends entirely upon the relativeloca'tion of the stop plate 62 and the cutting blade 64, as the end ofthe strip material 14 is urged into engagement with the stop plate 62 bysprings 37 and 37a whenever the cutting blade 64 is lifted as shown inFIG.

SHHe'nce, if it is desired to change the length of strip pieces 70 to beformed, it is merely necessary to relocate or reposition the stop plate62 and the cutting blade 64 with respect to one another. Furthermore, itwill be understood that a sufficient amount of the strip material 14 issupplied into the accumulating and feed device 34 when the supply rolls38, 40 are energized to produce several strip pieces 70 and thereforeseveral slot liners 10, and that the supply rolls 38, 40 will only beperiodically energized as the proximity switch 35 is switched on by thedevice 34.

In accordance with the exemplification, the rack section 84 is attachedto a vertically reciprocable carriage 85 (see e.g., FIG. which hasmounted in cantilever fashion on the upper ends thereof on arms 85a and8512 a horizontally extending supporting plate 87. The forward end ofthe supporting plate 87 lies under the forward end of a rocker assembly91 including rocker arms 92 and 93 rotatably mounted on a rocker shaft93a that is supported between stationary uprights 94 and 95 forming aportion of a stationary supporting frame 97. Stops 98 and 98a at theforward ends of the arms 92 and 93 respectively engage cut-out portions98c, 98d in the uprights 94 and 95. Coil springs 96 and 96a are mountedunder the rear ends of the rocker arms 92 and 93 respectively, and urgethe assembly in a counterclockwise direction (as seen, e.g., in FIG. 1).When the supporting plate 87 is carried upwardly by the carriage 85 aspreviously described, it will engage the rocker assembly and rotate itin a clockwise direction against the force of springs 96 and 96a.

' As will be seen in FIGS. 1, 9 and 15, the cutting blade 64 is mountedin a generally L-shaped subassembly 111 which includes a lower leg 112having a strip material slot 118 therein. The cutting blade 64 ismounted under the forward end of the rocker assembly arms 92 and 93 andreciprocably mounted on the other leg 114 of the subassembly 111. Thus,as will be seen in FIG. 15, the cutting blade 64 and a back plate 115are disposed on opposite sides of the leg 114 and connected throughelongate slots 116, 116a in the leg 114 b suitable connecting means.Mounted in the slots 116, 116a in the leg 114 are small springs (notillustrated) which normally urge the cutting blade 64 and the plate 115in an upward direction. It will be understood that when the carriage 85moves upwardly, the plate 87 will cock or rotate the rocker assembly ina clockwise direction (e.g., FIG. 1) with the blade 64 following therocker arms 92 and 93 upwardly due to the springs and with the stripmaterial 14 feeding up to the stop plate 62 as previously described, andafter the dwell period, the carriage 85 moves downwardly, wherein therocker arms 92 and 93, which engage the upper end of the cutting blade64, will force the cutting blade 64 downwardly thereby severing thestrip material 14 to form the strip piece 70.

The previously mentioned slot liner placing mechanism 60 is provided forplacing the strip piece 70 upon the forming blade or tool 80 to a shapeor effect a desired configuration thereof. This placing mechanism 60 isa subassembly which is mounted to the underside of the supporting plate87 (see FIGS. 9 and 11) and hence moves therewith. Referring further toFIGS. 9 and 11 as well as to FIGS. 12 and 13, it will be seen that theplacing mechanism 60 comprises a pair of slotted plates 67 and 68 spacedapart by a spacer block 69 having mounting openings 69a for mounting tothe plate 87. The slotted plates 67,and 68 define a slot 71 therebetweenthat is open at the lower ends of the plates. The previously mentionedpressure bar 135 is carried in the slot 71 on pins 72 that ride in theplate slots 73. The pressure bar 135 has a lowerface 74 shaped toconform to the upper face or surface 80b of the forming tool 80, with aspringbiased member 85 between the pressure bar 135 terial 14 to producea strip piece 70, the supporting plate 87 will carry the spaced apartslotted plates 67 and 68 over the forming tool 80 which is disposed invertical alignment with the slot 71. The spaced apart plates 67 and 68will be effective thereby to place the strip pieces into engagement withthe forming tool 80, and as the carriage 85 continues downwardly thelower face 74 of the pressure bar 135 will engage the strip piece 70tightly against the upper face or surface b of the forming tool 80,forcing the strip piece 70 to take the shape of this upper face 80b. Inaddition, as the carriage moves downwardly, the flat lateral extensionsor cuff-like portions 88 and 88a are formed by the cooperation betweencuff forming means 107 on the slotted plates 67 and 68 and mating cuffforming means 109 on the forming tool 80. Front and rear springs 135a,135b between the pressure bar 135 and frame 66 tend to maintain the barlevel.

and the pins 72 towards the bottoms of slots 73.

Referring again to FIGS. 1113, it will be seen that the cuff formingmeans 107 comprises a pair of inwardly directed legs 117 and 119 at thelower edges of the slotted plates 67 and 68 respectively. The legs 117,119 have rear vertical edges 123, 123a respectively which engage inrespective notches 125, 125a in the mating cuff forming means 109. Thestrip material 14 is fed into the sizing and forming station B so thatthe crease 140 of the strip piece 70 is aligned between the verticaledges 123, 123a and the notches 125, 125a. Hence, when the placingmechanism 60 is moved downwardly over the forming tool 8 0, the strippiece is folded along the crease 14c producing the lateral extensions 88and 88a, and the axial extension 89, as shownIin FIG. 12. These lateralextensions or flat cuff-like portions 88, 88a not only provide theaforementioned advantages, but also permit the strip piece 70, which isengagingly placed upon the forming tool 80 to form a strip piece havinga desired configuration, to be easily carried with the blade 80 into astator slot 90 as the legs 109a, 10% of the cuff forming means 109 canpush against the extensions 88 and 88a.

The pressure bar has a head portion 77 at its forward end including apair of vertical plates 78a and 78b. The plates 78a and 78b are looselypinned to the pressure bar 135 at their rear ends by slidable top andbottom pins 136 and 136a, and biased towards the pressure bar 135 attheir front ends by springs 79a, 79b carried on spring pin 79c. Plates78a, -79b'extend below the lower face 74 of the pressure bar 135 andform an opening 78g therebetween generally conforming to the shape ofthe forming tool 80. This head portion 77 will normally engage or atleast be in close proximity to the end face 12a of a stator core 12mounted on the mandrel 130, with the opening 78g being in axialalignment with a preselected slot 90 of the stator core 12. In order tohold the strip piece 70 carried on a tool such as the exemplified tool80, tightly against the tool sides, e.g., to compress it, so as toenable it to fit into an aligned core slot, the plates 78a and 78b haveinwardly disposed portions 780 and 78d forming inwardly disposed cammingsurfaces 784: and 78 respectively. Thus, when the forming tool 80 havinga strip piece 70 wrappingly engaged thereon is inserted toward a statorslot 90, the surfaces 78e and 78] will force the strip piece tightlyagainst the forming tool 80, holding the strip piece on the tool 80externally of the core and permitting the strip piece 70 to pass intothe slot 90 while effectively maintaining it on the tool 80 andpreventing it from becoming misaligned as it is carried into the slot.In addition, in order to release the strip piece when at least a portionof the strip piece is in the slot 90, as the tool 80 continues into theslot 90, the cuff forming legs 109a, 10% will engage the cammingsurfaces 782 and 78 forcing the plates 78a and 78b apart as shown inparticular in phantom lines in FIGS. 11 and 13. This will release thestrip pieces from their engagement by the plates 78a and 78b and permitthe strip piece to remain in the slot 90 as the tool 80 is withdrawn.

Since the forming tool 80 is, of necessity, smaller than the slot 90into which it is to be inserted, and since it is desirable that the slotliner formed from the strip piece 70 fully line the walls of each slot90 of the core 12, the upper face 87 of the forming tool 80 has alongitudinally extending groove 80a therein into which a portion of thestrip piece 70 is forced by the pressure bar 135'. When the forming tool80 is withdrawn from the slot 90, a deformed slot liner carried on thetool 80 will thereby snap apart or expand, engaging the entire innerwall or periphery of the slot, thereby fully lining the slot and alsohelping to keep the liner in the slot as the forming tool is Withdrawn.

The stationary supporting frame 97 also includes an elongate slot 134therein in which the aforementioned bar cam 194 is slidably received. Aswill be seen in FIGS. 1 and the bar cam 194 includes two cammingsections 335 and 336 thereon with each camming section having three campositions. The camming' section 335 acts with a cam follower 137 that isconnected to the stop plate 62, and the other cam section 336 acts witha cam follower 138 that is connected to the subassembly 111. The bar cam194 is connected through the linkage 190 to the aforementionedoscillating shaft 170, and hence when the shaft oscillates to carry aforming tool (80, 81 or 82) into position adjacent the strip placingmeans 60, the bar cam 194 will be moved in order to provide apredetermined distance between the stop plate 62 and the cutting blade64 corresponding to the desired langth of the strip piece 70 to beproduced.

Referring again to FIG. 15, it will be seen that the subassembly 111 isslidably mounted, at 200, on the cam follower 137 and attached to thecam follower 138, at 202, while the stop plate 62 is slidably mounted onthe cam follower 138, at 204, and attached to the cam follower 137, at206. It will also be seen that the two cam followers 137, 138 areslidably mounted at their rear ends in openings 210 and 212 respectivelyin the frame 97. The cam sections 335 and 336 are shaped with threecorresponding positions each, so that the cam followers 137, 138 maymove to one of three positions as the bar cam 194 is moved, and hencethe stop plate 62 and cutting blade 64 are moved relative to each otherto provide one of three predetermined distances therebetween. This isnecessary so that the strip pieces 70 that are cut will correspond inlength to the size of slot 90 in the stator 12 to be lined, and ofcourse, to the forming tool (80, 81 or 82) then located adjacent thestation or mechanism to receive the strip piece 70'. In order that thecam followers 137 and 138 will engage their cam sections 335 and 336respectively, a compression spring 214 is mounted between the stop plate62 and the frame 97 urging the stop plate 62 and follower 137 towardsthe bar cam 194. Also, a compression spring 216 and connecting pin 218are mounted between the subassembly 214 and frame 97 for urging thesubassembly 111 and follower 138 towards the bar cam 194.

Accordingly, from the foregoing description of the sizing and formingstation B, it will be appreciated that the strip material 14 which isfed therein is automatically sized, cut and placed upon a givenpreselected forming tool for insertion into an aligned core slot 90. Thesizing feature is accomplished by the cooperation between theaccumulating and urging device 34, the stop plate 62 and the cuttingblade 64 by a relatively simple yet effective mechanism which operatesin synchronism with other operating components and mechanisms of theapparatus.

INSERTING STATION (C) In accordance with the exemplification, as shownin FIGS. 1, 10, 11 and- 14, an inserting mechanism 100 is providing forinserting the various forming tools 80, 81 and 82 axially into alignedslots (90a, 90b, or 90c)of the magnetic core 12 seated on the mandrel130. The previously mentioned carriage 102 is mounted on guide rods 106and 108 and is movable between a forward and rear position by thelinkage 110 which is connected in turn to the idler shaft 163 and to thedriving cam 161 on the master control shaft The linkage 110 includesfirst and second bell crank type links or arms 110a and 110b 1 connectedby straight links 1100 and 110d. The arm 110a has a slot 110'e thereinto permit adjustment of the stroke of carriage 102. Thus, a simpleadjustment of link 110d in slot 110s will permit different lengths ofslot liners 10 to be inserted in cores having different stack heights.However, this adjustment need only be made for cores that varyconsiderably from the average, since the tool 80 will normally travelthrough and beyond a core mounted on the mandrel during the insertion ofa slot liner 10 (as shown for example in FIG. 7).

It will be understood by viewing FIGS. 1 and 16 that during eachrevolution of the master control shaft 120 the idler shaft 163 will turnin a first direction causing the tool 80 to be inserted into a slot 90,and will then thereafter turn back to withdraw the blade 80. Asillustrated by curve c in FIG. 16, carriage 102 will remain stationaryor dwell as the strip material 14 is fed, severed and placed upon thetool 80 and will then move forwardly to insert the tool 80 into a slotand will immediately return, withdrawing the tool 80.

In order for the carriage 102 to carry the various forming toolstherewith during its movement, the aforementioned connecting block orleg 124 is provided. Referring to FIGS. 9 and 14, it will be seen thatthe leg 124 is mounted in a carrier 220 that is connected to thecarriage 102. As will be seen in these figures, the carrier 220 includesa generally cross-shaped member 222 having a vertical portion 224 and ahorizontal portion 226. The vertical portion 224 has a slot 228 thereonin which the leg 124 is reciprocably mounted. The leg 124 is normallybiased downwardly into the notch 126 in a forming tool (e.g., tool 80)by a compression spring 230 mounted between a pin 232, connected to themember 222 and the bottom of a slot 234 in leg 124. During the normaloperation of the apparatus, the leg 124 will be seated in the notch 126in one of the forming blades (80, 81 or 82) to carry the blade into astator slot 90 (see, e.g., FIG. 1, wherein it will be seen that eachforming blade has a notch 126 therein, and understood that as the bladeassembly rotates to present the appropriate blade in an insertionposition, its notch 126 will engage the leg 124).

Provision has been made to prevent damage to the apparatus in case aforming tool should sense a defective stator core by meeting anobstruction in a core slot. Thus, the cover plate 236 of the carrier 220has an opening 238 therein having an inclined edge 240 forming a cammingmeans. The leg 124 has a pin or follower 242 thereon normally seated atthe lower end of inclined edge 240. However, if the forming tool (e.g.,tool 80 in FIG. 14) should meet with an obstruction while the carriage102 is moving forwardly, the pin 242 will ride up the edge 240 pullingthe leg 124 out of the slot 126 thereby preventing damage to the tool aswell as the remainder of the apparatus. Further, a hold down leg 244 isprovided for the blade 80 to prevent the blade from rising out of theannular members 182a, 182b and 1820 in such a case. In order to turn offthe apparatus and to indicate that the blade has become disengaged fromthe leg 124, a normally closed cut-off or limit switch 246 is providedalong with a pivotally mounted actuating mechanism 248 having an arm 250disposed over the leg 124 and a switch actuating arm 252 disposed overthe switch 246. Hence, when the leg 124 rises in the member 222, the arm252 will contact the switch 246 shutting off the drive motor 48. At thistime, it will, of course, be necessary for an operator to remove thedefective stator and restart the apparatus.

With reference again to the heretofore mentioned 15 forming blades ortools 80, 81 and 82, one of these forming blades is always supportedadjacent the forming mechanism 60 with the other two blades in theexemplification ready to be indexed into position to receive a piece ofelectrically insulating strip material 70 thereon. The three formingblades 80, 81 and 82 of the exemplification are shaped to correspondgenerally to the three differently shaped core slots 90a, 90b and 900 inthe exemplified stator core. However, if a stator core having more thanthree differently shaped slots is to be mounted on the mandrel 130, itis merely necessary to add additional forming tools to the assembly 180,and to change the cam 158 in order to control the rotation of the bladeassembly 180 and to change the preselected distances between the stopplate 62 and cutting blade 64.

INDEXING STATION (D) The stator core 12 is mounted upon the mandrel 130located adjacent the sizing and forming station B and the mandrel mustbe moved relative to the blade assembly 180 to locate the core slots inposition to receive slot liners thereon. Thus, the mandrel shaft 132having the spur gear 157 mounted on the rear end thereof is connected inthe gear train including the aforementioned spur gears 156, 155 and 154and the Geneva cam mechanism 152 to the master control shaft 120. Theshaft 132 will therefore rotate through a predetermined increment asdetermined by the four gears 154-157 during a predetermined quarter ofthe revolution of the master control shaft 120, as shown by curve a inFIG. 16 which incidentally represents the motion of bar cam 194 and itsfollowers 137, 138, the mandrel 130 rotation, the movement of bladeassembly 180, and the feeding of strip material 14 to the stop plate 62,all of which take place during the same portion of revolution of shaft120, during dwells in curves b and c.

In the exemplification, inasmuch as the exemplified stator core 12 hasfour poles, each with six slots, or a total of 24 slots, the shaft 132and mandrel 130 will rotate of a revolution during each cycle orrotation of the master control shaft 120 in order to present each of thetwenty-four slots in tum in position to receive a slot liner therein. Itis relatively simple to change the increment of revolution of the shaft132 and mandrel 130 if it is desired to develop slot liners 10 in a corehaving fewer or greater than 24 slots, as one merely has to change twoor more of the four gears 154-157 of the gear train. As will be seen inFIGS. 10 and 11, these four gears 154-157 are located externally of theapparatus housing 66, and hence are readily accessible for beingchanged.

In order to stop the appartus when the slots of a stator core (such ascore 12) have been filled with slot liners 10, first and secondproximity switches 260 and 262 have been provided at the indexingstation D. The proximity switch 260 is disposed adjacent the gear 123 onmaster control shaft 120, and the gear 123 has a switch actuator 261thereon. Thus, as the gear 123 rotates once each time the shaft 120rotates, the actuator 261 will pass the switch 260 for actuating it onceeach revolution of shaft 120. However, the electrical circuitry (notspecifically illustrated) is arranged so that the motor 48 will be shutoff by switches 260 and 262 only when both are actuated simultaneously(as, for example, by a conventional and circuit). The switch 262 isdisposed adjacent the spur gear 157 which in the exemplification rotatesonly of a revolution for each revolution of the master control shaft120. The gear 157 has a switch actuator 263 which will, therefore,actuate switch 262 only once in twenty-four revolutions in mastercontrol shaft 120, when all the slot 90 of the stator 12 are lined, andthe motor 48 will be automatically turned off when the slot liners aredeveloped in the core slots.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION I have, in the actual practice of my inventionwith the illustrated apparatus, developed slot liners in stator coreshaving between 16 and 36 slots. These stators have varied stack heights,bore diameters, and have from one to nine different slot configurationsor shapes. While the illustrated apparatus will handle graded slot coreshaving up to three different slots, it will be understood thatadditional slot shapes may be handled merely by adding more tools to thetool assembly 180. In addition, it will be appreciated that while I haveillustrated the present invention in conjunction with stator cores, theinvention is also useful for developing electrical insulators inmagnetic cores other than stator cores. Taking rotor or armature cores,by way of illustration, the rotor core may be supported with itslongitudinal axis offset from the center of rotation of mandrel 130, soas to locate the rotor slots in correct position relative to the formingtools. An expandable collet or other suitable supporting devices couldreadily be added to the present apparatus for holding a rotor core insuch correct position.

In view of the foregoing, it will be understood that the presentinvention is extremely versatile in that magnetic cores having variousstack heights and overall sizes, various numbers of slots, and variousslot configurations may have electrical insulators developed therein. Inthis regard with specific reference to the stator cores in slot lines, Ihave found it possible to set up from one type to another type statorcore within 10 to 15 minutes. For example, to accommodate stator coreshaving different bore sizes, it is merely necessary to change themandrel 130, to accommodate stator cores having different numbers ofslots, it is merely necessary to change the one or more of thegears154-157 and the cam 158 which are readily accessible and readily slipoff their various mounting shafts. In order to provide for differentslot configurations, it is merely necessary to add or change the formingtools, which may be accomplished merely by lifting the tools out of thetool as sembly 180 and placing other tools therein.

It will also be understood that the present invention incorporatesseveral other extremely desirable features which may be beneficial forsome applications, such as the man-. drel that is accurately dimensionedto provide a gauge for proper bore size and shape, the connecting leg124 that is movable to shut off the motor 48 and to indicate a defectivestator if a slot is obstructed, and the tools that carry the slot linersdirectly into the core slots rapidly and with a great degree ofconsistency and accuracy. Additional desirable features relating to theelectrical insulators produced are accurately dimensioned and hence fitthe core slots well, and that several varieties of cuffs may beprovided. In addition, a short coil end turn height or effective meanlength for the end turns is permitted.

While in accordance with the patent statutes, I have described what atpresent are considered to be the preferred forms of my invention it willbe obvious to those skilled in the art that numerous changes andmodifications may be made therein without departing from the true spiritand scope of the invention, and it is therefore aimed in the followingclaims to cover all such modifications.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is:

1. Apparatus for developing slot liners having differing desiredconfigurations in preselected slots of a magnetic core, the apparatuscomprising: a frame; means mounted on the frame for accumulatingpreselected quantities of dielectric strip material and for urging atleast. a portion of the preselected quantities of strip material towarda first position; means mounted adjacent the strip material accumulatingand urging means for supplying the preselected quantities thereto; meansfor restraining movement of the at least a portion of the strip materialdisposed at the first position; means mounted a predetermined distancefrom the restraining means at a second position for severing the stripmaterial to provide a piece of the electrically insulating stripmaterial having a preselected length as measured between the first andsecond positions; means for adjusting the predetermined distance betweenthe first and second positions to furnish pieces of dielectric stripmaterial of different preselected lengths thereby to permit attainmentof slot liner development of differing desired configurations; means forsupporting a magnetic core in a predetermined relation to therestraining means; and means mounted in communication with the locationbetween the first and second positions for effecting the desiredconfigurations of the strip pieces to produce slot liners and forinserting the slot liners into preselected slots of the magnetic core,wherein a number of slot liners having differing configurations may bedeveloped in preselected slots of the magnetic core.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the means for effecting the desiredconfigurations of the individual strip pieces to produce slot liners andfor inserting the slot liners into preselected slots of the magneticcore includes forming tools having cross sectional contours generallycorresponding to the shapes of the preselected slots of a magnetic corecarried on by the core supporting means, and a mechanism mounted next tothe forming tools for placing the individual strip pieces of dielectricstrip material onto an associated forming tool to effect the desiredconfiguration of the individual strip pieces to produce the slot liners,with the associated forming tools being adapted for movement into thepreselected slots of the magnetic core to carry the individual slotliners therein and to reduce the tendency of the individual slot linersfrom becoming misaligned in the preselected slots as they are beinginserted into the preselected slots.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 in which means for effecting the desiredconfigurations of the individual strip pieces to produce slot liners andfor inserting the slot liners into preselected slots of the magneticcores includes forming tools mounted for movement toward the preselectedslots of the magentic core, a mechanism disposed next to the formingtools for placing the individual strip pieces onto an associated formingtool to produce the slot liners, and a mechanism for maintaining theslot liner in position onto the associated forming tool as the formingtool inserts the slot liner into one of the preselected core slots.

4. The apparatus of claim 2 in which means is mounted in the vicinity ofthe magnetic core support means for maintaining the slot liner inposition on the associated forming tool as the tool carries the slotliner into the preselected core slot.

5. Apparatus for producing slot liners from dielectric strip material inpreselected slots of a magnetic core having at least two differentlyshaped slots, the apparatus comprising: means for feeding the dielectricstrip material from a strip material supply mechanism to a slot linerforming station; a forming tool assembly disposed generally adjacent theslot liner forming station and having at least two forming toolsgenerally corresponding in shape to the two differently shaped slots ofthe magnetic core; said slot liner forming station including stop meansin the path of travel of the dielectric strip material cutting meansspaced from said stop means for severing the dielectric strip materialto produce a piece of dielectric strip material having a firstpredetermined length, and means for placing the piece of dielectricstrip material onto one of said at least two forming tools thereby toproduce a slot liner having a desired configuration; a magnetic coresupporting means for holding the magnetic core adjacent said formingtool assembly; means for moving said one of the at least two formingtools having a slot liner thereon into the magnetic core wherein saidone forming tool will carry a slot liner into a preselected slot of themagnetic core having a first shape; and means for maintaining the slotliner in position on said one forming tool as the slot liner is beingcarried by said one forming tool into the preselected core slot.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 including means for moving said forming toolassembly to locate the other of said at least two forming tools inposition to receive a piece of dielectric strip material from saidplacing means, and

means for changing the spacing between said stop means and said cuttingblade means to produce another piece of dielectric strip material havinga second predetermined length wherein the another piece can be placed onsaid other forming tool, and said moving means being operative to movesaid other forming tool having the another piece of dielectric stripmaterial thereon into a slot of the magnetic core.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said magnetic core supporting meanscomprises a mandrel having a predetermined shape related to the desiredshape of the bore of the magnetic core adapted to be supported thereonfor indicating the bore shape and size of the magnetic core, whereby thecore bore may be gauged for proper bore shape and size.

8. The apparatus of claim 5 including a control shaft adapted forcontinuous rotation by a drive motor, first drive means on said controlshaft operatively connected with said forming means and with saidcutting blade means for effecting movement thereof; said moving meansincluding second drive means on said control shaft operativelyconnectable with each said forming tool for effecting movement of saidforming tool into the magnetic core, and third drive means on saidcontrol shaft operatively associated with said core supporting means formoving the magnetic core to sequentially locate each of the at least twodifferently shaped core slots in alignment with an associated formingtool, with said control shaft thereby providing synchronous action ofsaid forming means, said cutting blade means, said forming tools, andsaid core supporting means.

9. Apparatus for insulating preselected slots of a magnetic core withdielectric strip material, the apparatus comprising: feeding means forsupplying the strip material to a sizing and forming station, saidfeeding means including supply rolls for supplying a predeterminedquantity of the strip material to an accumulating device, and means forstopping said supply rolls in response to the predetermined quantity ofstrip material being supplied to said accumulating device; means fornormally urging said accumulating device toward said sizing and formingstation wherein said accumulating device feeds at least a portion of thepredetermined quantity of strip material to the sizing and preformingstation; core supporting means for holding a magnetic core havingaxially extending slots generally adjacent the sizing and formingstation; means disposed at the sizing and forming station for producingpieces of strip material having a preselected size and shape, saidlatter means including at least one forming tool mounted for movementrelative to the core supporting means, and a mechanism for placing thepieces of strip material onto said at least one forming tool to changethe shape of the pieces; means for effecting movement of the at leastone forming tool into a preselected axially extending core slot therebycarrying a piece of strip material placed thereon at the sizing andforming station; and means for maintaining the pieces on said at leastone forming tool during movement thereof into the preselected core slot.

10. Apparatus of claim 9 including means for concurrently stopping saidfeeding means, the strip material piece-producing means, the mechanismfor placing the strip material pieces onto the at least one formingtool, and said means for effecting movement of the at least one formingtool should said at least one forming tool meet an obstruction whentraveling into the preselected core slot.

11. A slot insulator for insulating a slot wall and a portion of atleast one end face of a magnetic core having exially extending slotsterminating in edges at end faces from a coil of electrically conductivewire carried in a slot, comprising: a piece of dielectric strip materialof a sufficient size to line the slot walls and to extend beyond the endfaces of the magnetic core, at least one edge of the piece being turnedoutwardly thereby forming laterally extending portions adapted to lieflat against 19 at least one end face of the magnetic core, and a bightportion between said laterally extending portions adapted to extend inan axial direction beyond the laterally extending portions to permit asection of the coil adjacent the edges of the slot to take a gradualbend.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 20 11/1960 Turk 1 29-205 1/ 1961McMaster et al 29-596 10/1965 Profitt et a1. 310-215 9/1964 Little310-215 6/1966 Roberts 29-596 JOHN F. CAMPBELL, Primary Examiner C. E.HALL, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R.

g ga UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE ()F CORRECTION Patent No. 3514 I 836 Dat d June 2 1970 Inventor) Lowell M. Mason It is certifiedthat error appears in the above-identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown below:

I' i I In column 17, line 56, insert a comma after "material".

In column 18, line 44 cancel "preforming" and insert --forming--.

In column 18, line 60, cancel "Apparatus", and insert -The apparatus; incolumn 18, line 67, cancel beginning with "11. A slot insulator forinsulating" to and including "to take a gradual bend." in column 19,line 5, and insert the following claim:

- 11. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the means for producing thepieces of strip material has edges formed on the placing mechanism andcooperating grooves in the at least one forming tool for providing thepieces with a generally lateral extension along at least one edgethereof adapted to insulate at least one end face of the magneticcore.--

SIGIIEI) AND mum (SEAL) -Attest: J

EdnrdMFlemhonIr.

WILLIAM 1:. sum, as. 3 0mm Ooznissiom of Pam

